The Diamond Plan

The Diamond Funeral Plan is perfect if you have a large family as it provides two limousines. It also includes a high quality wood veneer coffin, and allows viewing of the deceased in the Chapel of Rest at anytime.

As with all our plans, it also guarantees the funeral director costs for a cremation or burial funeral, a contribution is provided to help towards burial costs. You can personalise this plan with any special requests* you may have.

Once again, we have received the 5 star rating from Defaqto for the Diamond Funeral Plan as it provides one of the highest quality offerings in the market.

"As an ex insurance agent I am well aware of the need to look forward as well as the present. I therefore decided to take out this plan, which I am very pleased with. When I have completed my own plan I will continue the payments for a similar plan for my wife."

- Mr C Henshaw

The Diamond Plan Details

Making the arrangements

Support from a nationwide network of over 1,200 owned or approved Funeral Directors

Personal and regular contact with the family to provide advice and guidance on all aspects of arranging the funeral

Guidance on the registration of the death and collection of all necessary paperwork for the funeral to proceed

Co-ordinating with individuals and organisations, and managing logistics as required for the funeral to proceed

Co-ordination of any flowers or tributes and managing collection and payments of any charitable donations

Care of the Deceased

Collection and transportation of the deceased to the Nominated Funeral Director's premises at any time, 24 hours a day (within a 50 mile radius, excluding ferry and air fares)

Care and preparation of the deceased (embalming not included)

High quality wood veneer coffin

Viewing of the deceased in a private chapel of rest by agreed appointment, at any time

The Service

Arranging of the funeral service (at a local cemetery or crematorium)

Funeral director, driver and pallbearers to attend service

Hearse

Two limousines for family/mourners

Funeral procession from home to a service location then on to a crematorium or burial site

(Fees and costs of a service at a separate location not included)

Mutual agreement on the time and day of the cremation funeral during normal office hours

Guarantees the funeral director costs included in the plan for a cremation or burial funeral

For a cremation funeral the plan covers;

The crematorium fee at a local crematorium

The Minister of Religion or an Officiant’s fee equal to the amount paid for a standard funeral service at the crematorium or cemetery as listed in the Church of England Table of Parochial Fees

For a burial funeral the plan includes an ample contribution of £1,220

This can be used towards;

Burial costs, plot, Minister’s fees

This increases each year in line with the Retail Price Index (RPI) for the Plan’s duration

Flexibility

If you move home your plan moves with you, at no extra cost

Personalise the Plan at any time by documenting "Special Requests" such as hymns and readings*

Ability to add additional services to your plan, such as an extra limousine*

Ability to make additional contributions towards Special Requests during the lifetime of the Plan. Any contributions will increase each year in line with Retail Price Index (RPI)

Additional services

24 hour support from our UK based client service centre, to answer any questions you may have about your Plan or the service, available 365 days a year

24 hour telephone bereavement advice and counselling service

Complimentary thank you cards

What is Not Covered in a Dignity Funeral Plan

Medical certification fees. For deaths where a coroner investigation is required, there are no medical certification fees. Also, changes to legislation in May 2015 mean there will no longer be a charge for a medical certification for any deaths registered in Scotland. Similar legal changes are being considered for the rest of the UK, so we do not include provision for these fees in our Plans. If the funeral takes place outside of Scotland, and a coroner is not involved, then if applicable, the medical certification fees must be paid by the next of kin or personal representative, when arranging the funeral.

Repatriation from outside mainland Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Isle of Man and Isle of Wight.

Costs for removing artificial limbs and mechanisms such as pacemakers.

Costs associated with changes in regulations, tax, laws or generally accepted practice, which result in additional costs or affect the conduct of the funeral.

This list is not exhaustive, so please refer to the Terms & Conditions for further information.

Normal office hours are 9:00am - 5:00pm

*Additional special requests:

These can be added to the Plan at any time, however, some requests may incur an additional charge and may not be covered by the price guarantee. Any costs incurred from these requests will have to be paid for at the time of the funeral. Alternatively, you can pay a contribution in advance for any additional requests with the amount paid being subject to RPI inflation.

About Our Funeral Plans

Dignity is one of the UK’s leading providers of funeral plans. You can have a Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan if the person who the funeral is for is aged 50 or over and the
funeral is to take place in mainland Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Isle of Man or Isle of Wight. The Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan will provide the guaranteed services
included in the Plan through a Dignity Nominated Funeral Director when the time comes. Dignity operates a certified Quality Management System 9001:2008.

^£340 saving is based on the difference between the discounted Diamond plan price of £3,795 and the 2018 plan price of £4,135. Discount valid until 30th April 2019.

‡Purchase of a qualifying plan required for entry. Prize draw competition is open for entries between 17 September 2018 and 20 December 2018. One prize of £10,000 shall be awarded.
Open to residents in England, Scotland and Wales only. Terms and Conditions apply.

About this Key Features Summary

This document is intended to provide you with a summary of the key features and benefits of the Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan to allow you to assess whether it meets your requirements. Please refer to the Plan literature and Terms and Conditions that accompany this document for full details on the Plan.

What is the Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan?

Dignity offers a choice of Prepaid Funeral Plans, which let you pay for certain funeral costs in advance and include the main services for a funeral.

About Dignity

Dignity is one of the UK’s leading providers of funeral plans. Dignity launched the UK’s first nationally available funeral plan in 1985 and has helped over 824,000 people plan for their funeral in advance. Dignity plc is one of the UK’s largest operators of Funeral Directors and crematoria and is a British company listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Who is the Prepaid Funeral Plan for?

You can have a Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan if the person who the funeral is for is aged 50 or over and the funeral is to take place in mainland Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Isle of Wight or Isle of Man (Limited Plan not available on the Isle of Man).

What will the Prepaid Funeral Plan provide?

The Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan will provide the guaranteed services included in the Plan through a Dignity Nominated Funeral Director when the time comes. Provided that the Plan is paid for in full there will be nothing further to pay for the guaranteed services covered by the Plan.

All Plans guarantee to cover the following services:

Funeral Director Services;

Advice and guidance on all aspects of the funeral including the registration of the death and collation of all necessary paperwork for the funeral to proceed

Transport of the deceased to the Nominated Funeral Director’s premises within 50 miles

Preparation and care of the body

The coffin provided within the selected Plan

Funeral Director and staff to attend service

Provision of a hearse

24 hour telephone bereavement counselling

Third Party Cremation Costs;

The cremation fee

Fee for a Minister or an Officiant equal to the amount paid for a standard funeral service at the crematorium or cemetery as listed in the Church of England Table of Parochial Fees.

Dependent on the Plan chosen, the following are also guaranteed:

Family viewing by appointment or at any time

Limousines to transport the mourners

Transport to place of worship prior to cremation or burial

'Thank you' cards.

Burial Funerals

If burial is chosen, the Plan will include a contribution of £1,220 towards third party burial costs in place of the guaranteed Third Party Cremation Costs listed above. We will increase the value of the £1,220 contribution each year in line with the Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation to help it keep pace with rising costs.

What won't the Prepaid Funeral Plan provide?

The Plans do not include:

Embalming

The cost of Special Requests such as memorials, flowers, catering, newspaper obituaries etc.

Transport of more than 50 miles from the Nominated Funeral Director. Any charge for additional miles will be payable to the Dignity Nominated Funeral Director at the time

The cost of removal of mechanisms such as pacemakers (which must be removed before a cremation)

Costs for conducting the funeral, burial or cremation on a weekend, at an unusual hour or public holiday

Any additional charges that are passed to us due to changes in regulations, tax, laws or generally accepted practice

The cost of repatriation from outside mainland Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Jersey, Isle of Wight or Isle of Man (Limited Plan not available on the Isle of Man)

Any Doctor's fees and Coroner's fees.

Other Plan limitations include:

If the Plan is paid for by instalments and the funeral is required before the final payment has been paid, your Funeral Organiser would have to pay the outstanding balance at the time of the funeral.

Any taxes. Value Added Tax is not currently charged on a funeral service. However, if this or any other tax becomes chargeable on a funeral service or part of it, your Personal Representative must pay the tax at the time of the funeral.

Limited Plan limitations:

There is a restricted choice from approximately 800 Funeral Directors

You may not make any financial contribution payments towards the costs of any Special Requests

A restricted choice of date and time for the funeral will be available. Typically this means that with the Limited Funeral Plan the service will take place before 10.30am or after 3.30pm Tuesday–Thursday

Not available on the Isle of Man.

What are the prices of the Plans?

Dignity’s Prepaid Funeral Plans are designed to meet our customers’ different requirements and budgets. For example you can make a single payment or spread the cost of your Plan over 12 monthly instalments. The prices for these options are:

Plan

Single Payment

12 Monthly Instalments

Limited

£3,095

£257.91

Amber

£3,495

£291.25

Pearl

£3,875

£322.91

Diamond

£4,135

£344.58

The prices listed above are the full plan price and are valid as at 15/12/2017.

Prices are subject to review by Dignity. If at the point of application the Plan price has changed for any reason, we will advise you of this before we set up your plan and there will be no obligation for you to continue. Longer fixed instalment terms are available provided that all payments over any instalment term longer than 12 months are completed by the 85th birthday of the eldest person named on the plan and the instalment term does not exceed the maximum term available. Plans purchased over a period greater than 12 months will incur an additional fee.

How can I pay?

Payment methods include Credit or Debit Card, Cheque and Direct Debit. You can pay for your plan online, over the telephone by speaking with one of our advisors or, by enclosing payment with your paper application form.

How is the money I pay protected?

The money that you pay for your Plan is paid directly into the National Funeral Trust. The National Funeral Trust is completely separate and legally independent from Dignity.

The Trust is run by Managing Trustees, the majority of whom are independent of Dignity

PricewaterhouseCoopers conduct an annual actuarial valuation of the Trust Fund, which determines if there is enough money in the Trust Fund for Dignity to meet its liabilities and promises to Planholders

Ernst and Young are the appointed auditors and conduct annual audits of the Trust’s accounts

The Trust adheres to the rules of the Funeral Planning Authority, who receive copies of the Trust’s accounts and valuations and other information it requests.

What happens to the money in the Trust Fund?

All the money you pay for the Plan goes straight into the Trust Fund’s bank account. From the money held in the Trust:

Dignity is paid an allowance for the marketing, administration and lifetime customer management of the Plan

There are annual costs for Trust management services, audits, valuations and other scheme expenses

An amount from each Plan is retained in the Trust to help the Trust maintain a surplus so it can better withstand unexpected rises in funeral costs or better cope with poor investment returns

The remaining balance is available to pay the Dignity Nominated Funeral Director, after the funeral has taken place, who agrees to provide all the guaranteed services for this sum

We publish a Report on the National Funeral Trust annually and it is available upon request.

What happens if there is not enough in the Trust to pay for the funeral?

In the unlikely event that the Trust does not have enough money to cover the future cost of funeral services promised to Planholders, Dignity would still honour the guarantees made to Planholders. Dignity owns a nationwide network of Funeral Directors and crematoriums and even in extreme circumstances should still be able to meet the promises made to Planholders.

What happens if Dignity goes out of business?

The money for your funeral would still be protected because it is legally separate from Dignity. In the unlikely event that we were to go out of business it may however mean that we would be unable to provide the funeral we had promised to provide. If this happened the Managing Trustees of the Trust would work with the remaining Nominated Funeral Directors, and where necessary seek to appoint new Nominated Funeral Directors, to continue to provide services to Planholders.

We are a registered provider with the Funeral Planning Authority and in this scenario other Registered Providers would co-operate in the delivery of the Authority’s “Pledge to Customers” by which the other Registered Providers will examine the ways in which they might assist in delivering the funerals of customers of the insolvent Registered Provider.

What will I be sent after I apply for a Plan?

Once your Application Form has been received, your Plan will be set up within 14 days and you will be sent your Planholder Pack. This will contain confirmation of the Plan you have purchased, the amount you have paid, what is covered, details of the Funeral Director and how to claim. It will also contain a pack to be given to your Funeral Organiser

What happens if I move home?

You must inform us so we can update our records. If you have moved to a new area we may need to allocate a new Nominated Funeral Director. There is no charge for this, as your Plan is portable, and all the Plan guarantees will still be honoured.

Can I choose my Funeral Director?

We will allocate a Funeral Director to your Plan, which we refer to as the Nominated Funeral Director. For the Amber, Pearl, and Diamond Plans there are over 1,200 Nominated Funeral Directors and for the Limited Plan there are approximately 800 Nominated Funeral Directors across the UK. If you would like to check if your Plan can be allocated to a specific Funeral Director please contact us before you purchase. We may change your Plan to a different Nominated Funeral Director if required.

What happens if the Nominated Funeral Director goes out of business?

If this were to happen, Dignity would re-allocate your Plan to a new Nominated Funeral Director. All the guarantees made in your Plan would still stand and you would not be charged any additional fees.

How to claim

When the person who the Plan is for passes away the Funeral Organiser should telephone Dignity direct at any time 24 hours a day on 0800 587 2541. Alternatively you can call or visit the Nominated Funeral Director, whose contact details will be confirmed in the Planholder Pack.

What happens if my family or representative doesn't use the Plan?

If the Plan is not found until after the Planholder’s funeral is arranged, or if your Next of Kin or Executor chooses not to use the Plan, they can cancel the Plan and receive a refund of the original amount paid for the Plan less the £249 cancellation fee.

Cancellation

You can cancel your Plan at any time. To receive a full refund of any payments made you must cancel the Plan within 30 days from the date you receive your Planholder Pack and Agreement. We will charge a fee of £249 for cancellations after 30 days. Refunds will be completed within 14 days of the request being received.

If you wish to cancel your Plan tell us either by completing and returning the form included in the Planholder Pack we send you or otherwise tell us by:

How to make a complaint

If you wish to complain please contact our Client Liaison Officer who will acknowledge your complaint within 2 working days and will do their utmost to ensure any complaint is dealt with as quickly as possible. Contact details are as follows:

Regulation

Dignity is a Registered Provider with the Funeral Planning Authority, the professional body that oversees the operation of registered funeral plan companies. If you are dissatisfied with the response from us you can make a complaint to them. Their details are:

The Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plan is not a regulated financial services product and as such is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority or covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

You also have access to an Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) platform which is provided by the European Commission. It allows consumers to submit complaints through the site and the complaint will then be allocated to an approved and appropriate Alternative Dispute Resolution Provider (ADR). For more information on this service please visit: http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr.

The Funeral Planning Authority when handling complaints uses one of the approved Alternative Dispute Resolution providers and you can gain direct access to them by using the FPA contact details provided above.

Law

English law applies to this agreement.

This Key Features Summary applies to Dignity Prepaid Funeral Plans purchased from 17th September 2018.

Need to Contact us?

If after reading this document you have any questions here are our contact details;